Presser foot for sewing machines



May-ch 7, 1944. s. ZONIS PRESSER-FOOT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed June 21, 1943 Patented Mar. 7, 1944 PRESSER FOOT FOR SEWING MACHINES Sydney Zonis, Bridgeport, Conn, assignorto The Singer Manufacturing Company,

Elizabeth,

' N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application June 21, 1943, Serial No. 491,608

Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in sewing machine presser-feet of the type capable of being adapted for employment to effect fulling or shirring of the work as well asfor the usual plain stitching operations.

The present invention has for its object to provide improved means for changing the effective action of a sewing machine presser-foot for alternative employment for plain stitching and for fulling or shirring operations.

The invention consists in the presser-foot construction hereinafter described in connection with the accompanying drawing, which illustrates a preferred embodiment of the invention and in which:

'Fig. 1 is a left side elevation of the presserfoot, the needle, the rotary looper and a portion of the feeding mechanism of a sewing machine containing the present improvement, the throatplate of the machine and the work being shown in section, and the presser-foot being tilted for fulling the work. Fig. 2 is a left side elevation of the presser-foot and the needle, with the presser-foot shown in plain stitching position and partly in section. Fig. 3 represents an enlarged top plan view, partly in section, of a portion of the presser-foot; the section being taken substantially on the line 33 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is an enlarged front side elevation, partly in section, of the presser-foot; the section being taken through the sole-plate on substantially the line 4--4 of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the sole-plate positioning member.

The sewing machine shown in part in the drawing has a vertically reciprocatory needle H) and a wing-type rotary looper l l complemental to the needle H1 in the formation of chainstitches. The work W is intermittently advanced by a conventional lower four-motion feed-dog l2 which operates through feed slots, as I3, provided in a work-supporting throat-plate I4.

Opposed to the feed-dog I2 is the sole-plate 15 of the present improved presser-foot. The sole-plate l5 has an upturned toe H5 at its forward end and is provided with a needle-aperture 11; said' needle-aperture IT merging into the usual rearwardly extending thread-chain clearance slot I8 and being disposed medianly between the front and rear ends of the presser-foot.

Rising from the sole-plate l5, rearwardly of the needle-aperture IT, is a lug IS. The lug l9 enters a clearance-recess 2!) formed in the lower end of a shank-member 2|; the sole-plate l5 being pivotally secured to the shank-member 2| by a hinge-pin 22 extending horizontally through said shank-member and the lug l9 crosswise of the line of seam formation. The shank-member 2| is detachably secured by a screw '23 to the lower'end of a conventionally spring-depressed presser-bar 24.

The upper face of the heel portionof the soleplate 15 is recessed to receive the lower end of a coil-spring 25 disposed in a socket 2% formed in the lower end of the shank-member 2! rearwardly of the hinge-pin 22. The spring 25 functions yieldingly to tilt the toe it of the s'ole plate i5 upwardly. The presser-foot as thus far described is of conventional construction.

In accordance with the present improvement, the shank-member 2! is provided with a circular hole 21 extending parallel to the line of seam formation and disposed above the shank-recess 2i]. Journaled for turning adjustment in the hole 2'! is a cylindrical positioning-member '28 which is cut away between its 'ends to form a reduced shank 29 and axially spaced circumferential shoulders 38. A set-screw 3| is threaded into the presser-foot shank-member 2| for engagement with the reduced shank 25; said setscrew having a diameter substantially equal to the length of the reduced shank 29. The setscrew 3! thereby functions not only to secure the positioning-member in angularly adjusted position, but also serves to hold the positioningmember 28 against en'dwise movement when the set-screw 3! is released sufliciently to permit of turning adjustment of the positioning-member 28. a

At forward end, the positioning-member 28 is reduced to form an eccentric-head 32 which is lengthwise cut away or slabbed at one side of its axis -to'iorm a flat face 33. The eccentrichead 32of the positioning-member overlies a thrust-pin 34 which is slidably disposed for endwise movement in a vertically inclined aperture 35 formed in the wall of the shank-member 2| to extend from the shank-member hole 21 to the sole-plate lug clearance-recess 20. The thrustpin 34 is disposed so that the lower end thereof engages the upper face of the sole-plate lug IS in advance of the hinge-pin 22.

In the conventional use of the described presser-foot for plain stitching operations, the positioning-member 28 is angularly adjusted and set in a position wherein the fiat face 33 of the eccentric-head 32 is opposed to the upper end of the thrust-pin 34 as illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawing. In this position of the member 28, the thrust-pin 34 is spaced from the eccentric-head 32 when the presser-foot sole-plate l5 assumes its horizontal position or flatwise engagement with the work. Consequently, the sole-plate I5 is at this time free to rock a limited extent about the hinge-pin 22. In this position, the presser-foot sole-plate I5 is opposed to the feed-dog l2 both forwardly and rearwardly of the path of needle reciprocation, so that there is no special tendency to full or shirr the work.

However, when operating upon stretchy materials, there is a decided tendency to elongate the work by the work-advancing action of the feeddog l2. As the needle penetrates the work after a work-advancing movement of the feed-dog, the work is secured in its stretched condition by the stitches, whereby the work is distorted along the seam line.

To overcome this diificulty, the positioningmember 2| is angularly adjusted so that the eccentric circular face of the head 32 thereof is ,brought into engagement with the upper end of the thrust-pin 34 to depress said thrust-pin, thereby tilting the forward or toe end of the soleplate I5 downwardly, as illustrated in Fig. 1 of the drawing. The positioning-member 28 may, of course, be adjusted into a plurality of set positions determining difierent angles of inclination of the sole-plate l5, to meet difierent requirements. In order conveniently to turn the positioning-member 28, the rearward end thereof is provided with a screw-driver slot 36.

In the inclined position of the sole-plate I5 illustrated in Fig. 1 of the drawing, the work is fed in advance of the path of needle-reciprocation in a manner to crowd the work at the stitching point. .When the work is of a stretchy character, the result may be a mere fulling of the work at the needle path to an extent compensating for the stretching of the work incidental to the feeding action of the feed-dog l2.

Should the work be of a more inelastic charactenthe feeding of the work solely in advance of the needle results in shirring the Work; the fullness of the shirring varying with different angles of inclination of the presser-foot soleplate 28.

Having thus set forth the nature of th invention, what I claim herein is:

l. A sewing machine presser-foot comprising, a shank-member, a work-engaging sole-plate pivotally carried by said shank-member for tilting movements about an axis extending crosswise of said sole-plate, an upright thrust-pin slidably supported upon said shank-member for endwise engagement with the upper face of said sole-plate at a point spaced from the pivot-axis of the soleplate, a positioning-member journaled upon said shank-member for turning adjustment into and out of sole-plate tilting engagement with said thrust-pin, and means for securing said positioning-member in set position.

2. A sewing machine presser-foot comprising, a shank-member, a work-engaging sole-plate pivotally carried by said shank-member for tilting movements about an axis extending crosswise of said sole-plate, an upright thrust-pin slidably supported upon said shank-member for endwise engagement with the upper face of said sole-plate at a point spaced from the pivot-axis of the soleplate, a positioning-member journaled upon said shank-member for turning adjustment, said positioning-member having an eccentric-head disposed for peripheral engagement with the upper end of said thrust-pin, and means for securing said positioning-member in set position.

3. A sewing machine presser-foot comprising, a shank-member, a work-engaging sole-plate pivotally carried by said shank-member, a positioning-member journaled upon said shank-member and disposed above said sole-plate for turning adjustment, said positioning member having a slabbed eccentric-head, and a thrust-pin interposed between said eccentric-head and a portion of said sole-plate spaced from the pivotal axis of the so1ep1ate, said thrust-pin being supported by and confined to endwise movement upon said shank-member.

4. A sewing machine presser-foot comprising, a shank-member, a work-engaging sole-plate pivotally carried by said shank-member, a cylindrical positioning-member journaled for turning adjustment in said shank-member and disposed above said sole-plate, said positioning-member having an eccentric-head, means for restraining said positioning-member against endwise movement during turning adjustment thereof, and means interposed between said eccentric-head and said sole-plate for tilting said sole-plate by turning adjustment of said positioning-member.

5. A sewing machine presser-foot comprising, a shank-member, a work-engaging sole-plate piv otally carried by said shank-member, a cylindrical positioning-member journaled for turning adjustment in said shank-member above said sole-plate, said positioning-member having an eccentric-head and being provided with axially spaced and circumferentially extending shoulders, a set-screw threaded into said shank-member for engagement with said positioning-member between said shoulders, and a thrust-pin interposed between said eccentric-head and a portion of said sole-plate spaced from the pivot-axis thereof, said thrust-pin being supported by and confined to endwise movement upon said shankmember.

SYDNEY ZONIS. 

